An 18-year-old Eureka man who walked by Cutten Elementary School carrying a shotgun and ammunition Friday morning was taken into custody at gunpoint and evaluated for mental health issues, the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office said.

The man was carrying the shotgun over his head and had ammunition in a camouflage tactical vest.

Humboldt County Sheriff's Office Lt. Steve Knight said deputies found the man after he had already passed by Cutten Elementary, and was north of the school at Walnut Street and Arbutus Street. Two deputies drew their firearms and "proned him out at gunpoint," Knight said, telling him to put down the shotgun.

The man -- whose name has not been released because he was not booked into jail -- took several seconds before putting down the weapon.

Knight said his department received at least four calls reporting a man with a shotgun and backpack on Walnut Street. The first was at 10:33 a.m., the second and third at 10:35 a.m., and a fourth at 10:36 a.m., which is when deputies contacted the man.

One of the calls came from Cutten Elementary, he said.

"I think everyone's on edge because of what happened (in Newtown, Conn.)," Knight said. "We're very happy nobody was injured."

The man was holding a 12-gauge Remington 870 shotgun above his head when deputies located him. He was wearing a camouflage tactical vest loaded with sixteen rounds of 12-gauge buckshot and slugs, a sheriff's office press release said. The shotgun was unloaded.

He reportedly told deputies, "I am on the way to the courthouse to make a point that law enforcement can not protect kids, and I am going to protect the kids."

Knight said he didn't know where the man was coming from, or how long he had been walking.

Cutten Elementary School District Superintendent Julie Osborne said a student at her school reported seeing the man walk by. The school secretary called 911, and before the campus could go on lockdown, deputies had detained the man, she said.

"It happened so fast," Osborne said. "The community probably heard about this before I did."

She said there were no students outside when the man walked past. The student that reported the incident was inside a school bus that had just arrived from Ridgewood Elementary, the other campus in the district, Osborne said.

Osborne said her school's lockdown procedures are up-to-date. "Parents are informed, and teachers know them," she said.

All schools are in a heightened state of alert in light of recent events, Osborne said.

"Our school's first priority, no matter the climate, is to keep students safe," she said.

Osborne said the school sent a letter home with students, informing their parents what happened. The district has recently considered adding an emergency alert system that would use automated calls and text messages, she said.

"One thing we have in this community is eyes on our schools," she said. "We know people on campus. And if we don't know who they are, we find out immediately."

Mark McKenna, the parent of a third grade girl and sixth grade boy at Cutten Elementary, said he had been following news reports of the incident throughout the day, but had not been notified by the school. He said that was OK with him, considering the situation was "over before it really started."

"If (the man) had cruised through the playground, I would've expected to be notified," he said.

Knight said the man has never been arrested before, and was not a person known to law enforcement. As of Friday afternoon, Knight said "there was no indication (the shotgun) was stolen, or unlawful to possess." He did not know if the man had been released following his mental health evaluation.

"We're just grateful the public called in and notified us," Knight said.